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Postural AF?

Posted , 4 users are following.

OldNick
OldNick

I have moderate PAF. I get VEBs during the day, very occasionally, but at night/ morning is when I get the PAF.

I reckon that I have found that lying on my left side makes it happen far more often than other sleeping positions. Turning over solves a lot and sitting up solves more. Walking about solves most of the rest and Flecatabs hanbdle the other few.

I have mentioned this to both my GP and my Cardio and they both sort of shrugged it off.."Never heard that before". Almost identical wording.

So. Do some of you guys see this happening? I may need to "educate" my cardio! smile

Thanks for any input.

Nick

 

0 likes, 12 replies

12 Replies

  • mazieboo22
    mazieboo22 OldNick

    Posted

    Hi, I agree wtih lying on the left side can make it worse as mine is so I tend to lie on my right side. Walking the dogs helps mine and I have always had PAF on waking it has never happened during the day.

    I have also asked if certain things trigger it but they Cardiologist says there is no real trigger for it to be really bad, obviously caffeine can affect it but I only drink decaf drinks and I didn't think that was a trigger anyway.

    Hope this helps.

    • OldNick
      OldNick mazieboo22

      Posted

      OK. Thanks! I am a little dismayed that both Drs have not heard about this. I am going to watch replies and see what happens.

      Funny thing is I remember that a medical exam specifically asked if VEBs were posturally related. I am pretty sure mine are related to my back and neck...so why not PAF?

      Nick

  • ian0847
    ian0847 OldNick

    Posted

    Hi

    i have the same issue. My bouts are usually triggered (or accompanied) by indigestion leading to very bad wind. If I lie on my back when I go to bed I can usually cope but when I fall asleep and turn to my left side it seems to trigger bouts of burping and set off the afib.

    MY doc told me that the cause is stimulation of the vagus nerve which affects the heart. 

    I try various diets to eliminate that which cause the wind but it's not always obvious what is going to give me indigestion. The wind, I might add is usually quite violent - not your normal polite burp!

    i also agree regarding caffeine. Stress also causes flutters for me.

     

    • OldNick
      OldNick ian0847

      Posted

      Thanks for the reply.

      AHAH! Yes the vegus nerve. I did not want to "Get Smart" smile but long ago I connected the vegus nerve to a LOT of trunk problems. The reason was that a very fit guy I knew was working on a hot day and drank a glass of iced water....and ended up in ER after passing out in a big way. The cold water hit the VN and stopped his heart for a couple of minutes.

      There was a time when... THEY.. used to slice the nerve to "cure ulcers". So that nerve is a powerful ally but a tough foe!

      This would explain why the PAF is tied in with the VN and indigestion. I have seen a few posts here about the connection between indigestion and PAF/VEBS, andf congrats to your doctor to be up with it!

  • andrew22534
    andrew22534 OldNick

    Posted

    For me the most frequent causer.. is... sprawled watching tv i have to sit up ... like you flec and walking often cure,... the remaining 10% is urgent treatment. i have been told by one or two speacialists that we, the patients, are the experts in our condition - if we are doing some at least research and keeping notes... if the cardio hasnt heard of it then maybe some reading would help. I have found two cardilogists in the same place can disagree ... so teach away!
  • mazieboo22
    mazieboo22 OldNick

    Posted

    Hi, I had very bad indigestion but was prescribed Lanzoprazole which stopped it instantly.

    There is a link between the Vagus nerve and AF and if you ask the cardiologist they will not entertain it but a digestive specialist does say there is a link.

    My acid reflux was so bad it was damaging my vocal chords and the specialist said you can get lots of problems from the digestive system affecting many parts of the body.

    Since taking the Lanzoprazole I have had one serious bout of AF but I had nothing for 8 years prior to this one two years ago.

  • CDM2
    CDM2 OldNick

    Posted

    Sorry for being thick but what are VEBs?
    • OldNick
      OldNick CDM2

      Posted

      Ventricular Ectopic Beats. Your heart will suddenly give an extra-fast beat, then pause for 1-2-3 beats before beating again. So your heart goes bump ..bump ..bump .. bump b-bp bumpbump bump ... bump bump etc.

      In my case I feel it in my upper chest as a bump, then a pause then usually a rapid beat or two then service as normnal .

      As distinct from AF, it is intermittent, not happening every beat (so although the AF may be transient, it happens constantly for the duration). But I have had VEBs bad enough to be scary. For me they tend to be more "feelable" than AF, but more intermittent than constant

      AF keeps your heart FEELING as if it's beating very irregularly (like 40-200 BPM) but actually it's fluttering at 200BPM and only pumping every 4-5th beat.

    • CDM2
      CDM2 OldNick

      Posted

      ah.. I have a friend who has that. She is on flecainide for it and it works for her.  I have afib only.. BTW: I've been doing yoga breathing and it helps. 
  • sylvester13
    sylvester13 OldNick

    Posted

    Hi Nick

    Yes I too get a few isolated missed beats when I lie down and now that I think about it is wthen I lie on my left - didnt put two and two together though so as they say every day is a school day and I have learned something I didnt know.  I have never bothered mentioning this to GP as I didnt think it worth mentioning

  • OldNick
    OldNick

    Posted

    hmmm..interesting. There is a strong pattern here. Thanks guys. Maybe it's not _worth_ telling the Dr after my shruggy response, even from the cardio!

    I have had VEBs for ....30 years? But AF only in the last 4 years, I reckon. Big difference, having experienced both. It took me months of VEBs to even go to the GP, but my first AF attack I was off to ER!

    Another interesting GP tale. On my second attack, rather than go to ER, I went to the GP and was slotted in fast. When I commented that I was scared about what was happening to me, the GP said "Why?. I was so astounded I just did not reply. I am not sure whether she was some sort of fatalist, or just had no empathy. smile

    Nick

    • mazieboo22
      mazieboo22 OldNick

      Posted

      Hi my first bout of Paroxysmal AF I was in the shower and it felt a bit strange having a fast beat but I think I had put up with it for a while and as the day wore on I had the most awful headache, borrowed a work colleagues blood pressure machine and it would not register. I phoned GP and went straight there had ECG he sent me to hospital with a friend who had taken me and it was over 150bpm and blood pressure was off the scale. This must have started in the night as I woke up with it and at hospital they were contemplating restarting my heart to get it back in sinus rythym but after 9 hours of being there they got blood out of my arm and the rythym went back to normal. They said it might has just been a one off and it was for 10 years then two years ago I awoke with it not in any rhythym it was all over the place so GP saw me as the surgery opened and put me on an ECG but it didn't regulate itself so they gave me bisprolol and said in half hour it would be normal. It took an hour and I had to let the surgery know if it worked or it was a hospital job. Due to having the missed beats and diabetes I am now starting on Warfarin tomorrow due to the risk of a stroke. Mine is worse if I get stressed out with the missed beats but the Paroxsysmal AF is just something I am told will come and go with no trigger.
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